A respected Philadelphia homicide detective is mistakenly accused of murder in a racist southern town, and is then hired to help the local sheriff with the investigation. The movie town's name was changed to Sparta so that signs in the Illinois community where the flick was filmed would not have to be changed. The railroad station used in the film is now the Misselhorn Art Gallery, which features a permanent exhibit dedicated to the movie.

(TEMPORARILY CLOSED beginning 10/08 except for special events.) Pierre Menard, an important political figure in 1818, built this home. It is furnished with many of the Menard family's personal possessions and other period pieces. The surrounding grounds and outbuildings include an herb garden, smokehouse, springhouse, and adjoining kitchen.

Two thousand original drawings, paintings, and woodcuts by Roscoe Misselhorn, the Norman Rockwell of the Midwest, are displayed in the depot. Much of the work is in black and white and depicts historic sites throughout the area.

This gallery features the works of renowned Southern Illinois sketch artist Roscoe Misslehorn, as well as exhibits by contemporary artists. The building is the GM&O railroad depot that was used as a location for the 1967 movie, In the Heat of the Night.

This former French military stronghold has been partially rebuilt and turned into a museum. Regular living history events shed light on colonial life in Illinois, and include 18th-century crafts, food, music, hundreds of historically dressed participants, flintlock rifle and musket contests, cannon and mortar competitions, traders and much more. There are also guided tours of the 1800 Creole House, which was designed in the French-American Transitional Architecture style.